Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Urban Vegan Tester #10 - Cumin-Harissa Dipping Sauce

Today I tried out a new food item called harissa. It's new to me, anyway. Harissa is a North African condiment, a paste made from hot chili peppers, garlic, salt and olive oil. I found this brand, called Cap Bon, at Whole Foods.

I used the harissa to make a dipping sauce found in the Urban Vegan's upcoming cookbook. The spicy, creamy sauce tastes just fine on a seitan burger, but it really excels as a dip for sweet potato fries. Its heat is a perfect match for the sweet potatoes' intrinsic sweetness.

If you're someone who habitually adds hot sauce or crushed red pepper to your food, I encourage you to seek out your own little can of harissa!